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"&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;With a focus on players who \u201Chave done so much for the national team program that they understand exactly now what this is all about,\u201D U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann on Saturday unveiled the 23-man squad that will play Mexico on Oct. 10 for CONCACAF\u2019s berth in the 2017 Confederations Cup.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The playoff between the past two continental champs is a mammoth match for the Americans, who finished a miserable fourth in this summer\u2019s Gold Cup. A victory next week at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, will help erase that stain and likely will quiet the questions surrounding the U.S.\u2019s progress under Klinsmann. The eight-team Confederations Cup offers the only opportunity outside the World Cup to play teams from beyond CONCACAF in official competition, as well as a sneak peek at Russia a year in advance.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;With so much at stake, Klinsmann is relying on experienced, in-form athletes. The 23 players named Saturday were pulled from a 35-man preliminary roster submitted in mid-September. Defenders Omar Gonzalez and John Brooks, midfielder Mix Diskerud and forward Aron J\u00F3hannsson are the most prominent players who failed to make the cut.\r\n\r\n\r\n\t&lt;strong&gt;PODCAST: Petr Cech, Laura Harvey interviews; USOC final rewind&lt;/strong&gt;\r\n\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Klinsmann called the playoff \u201Ca game that for the next two or three years to come is probably the biggest game,\u201D the U.S. will play. The manager, who boasts a 5-0-5 all-time mark against Mexico as a player or coach, made it clear that the result may impact the national team\u2019s long-term trajectory. It very well may mark a threshold between eras.\r\n\r\n\r\n\t&lt;strong&gt;BIRD: USA into Olympic qualifying semis after routing Cuba&lt;/strong&gt;\r\n\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;\u201CI think it\u2019s really an interesting moment now because you have a core group of players that are kind of running out of time and I just want them to just embrace that moment,\u201D Klinsmann said. \u201CAll these guys in their thirties, they need to realize, \u2018You know what? I may not be getting these opportunities any more. This is it. We better take that trophy.\u2019 However it looks like, we\u2019ve got to go and get this thing. This is really about chemistry and getting the group together and making it a really special atmosphere the whole week leading into the Rose Bowl moment.\u201D\r\n\r\n\r\n\t&lt;b&gt;WAHL: Judgment Day coming for Klinsmann, USA&lt;/b&gt;\r\n\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Here\u2019s a closer look at Klinsmann\u2019s team, which will gather next week for training in Southern California:\r\n\r\n&lt;h3 class=\"p1\"&gt;&lt;b&gt;Goalkeepers&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), Tim Howard (Everton), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)&lt;/b&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Klinsmann already has anointed Guzan the starter against Mexico. Howard and Rimando will push the Aston Villa man in practice and will provide sure-handed relief if necessary. In March 2013, Guzan shut out Mexico at the Estadio Azteca in a World Cup qualifier.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Cut: Bill Hamid&lt;/em&gt;\r\n\r\n\r\n\t&lt;strong&gt;\u200BSTRAUS: Guzan seizes chance as USA's No. 1&lt;/strong&gt;\r\n\r\n\r\n&lt;h3 class=\"p1\"&gt;&lt;b&gt;Defenders&amp;nbsp;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Ventura Alvarado (Club Am\u00E9rica), DaMarcus Beasley (Houston Dynamo), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders), Fabian Johnson (Borussia M\u00F6nchengladbach), Michael Orozco (Club Tijuana), Tim Ream (Fulham), Jonathan Spector (Birmingham City)&lt;/b&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Gonzalez is the most surprising omission from the roster. The LA Galaxy veteran did well at the 2014 World Cup and played every minute in each of the four most recent matches against Mexico, during which the U.S. yielded only two goals combined. He\u2019s come through before in big games against El Tri, but Klinsmann felt there were other defenders in better form.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;\u201CThe competition is very, very tight,\u201D the manager said. \u201CNot having Omar Gonzalez or Mix Diskerud on this roster, for example, is not because they are not good enough. It\u2019s just because you see another player that is better in their position right now in this specific moment. Those are always tough decisions that a coach has to make.\u201D\r\n\r\n\r\n\t&lt;strong&gt;WAHL: What's stopping USA from hosting Copa America Centenario?&lt;/strong&gt;\r\n\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;John Brooks, who Klinsmann preferred at the Gold Cup, has been battling injury since playing for the U.S. in the Sept. 4 friendly against Peru (first a thigh, now an ankle). His absence, along with Gonzalez\u2019s, leaves Alvarado, Besler and Cameron at the top of the center back depth chart.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Alvarado had a rough Gold Cup and spent most of September on the bench at Am\u00E9rica, but Klinsmann remains a big fan of the 23-year-old.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Klinsmann has said that his top choices at outside back are Beasley, who\u2019s been capped just twice since the World Cup, and Johnson. Spector, whose brief appearance in the 4-1 loss to Brazil on Sept. 8 was his first in a U.S. shirt in more than three years, has earned another call-up. Along with Tim Ream and Brad Evans, Spector can play in several spots along the back line.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Cut: John Brooks, Greg Garza, Omar Gonzalez&lt;/em&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;h3 class=\"p1\"&gt;&lt;b&gt;Midfielders&amp;nbsp;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Alejandro Bedoya (Nantes), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Jermaine Jones (New England Revolution), Danny Williams (Reading), DeAndre Yedlin (Sunderland), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City)&lt;/b&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Klinsmann has invested a lot of energy and minutes in Diskerud, who\u2019s demonstrated an ability to make the sort of play that changes a game but hasn\u2019t had a consistent impact this season with New York City FC. He\u2019s a surprising omission from the 23-man team but was always unlikely to start against Mexico.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;\u200BBradley and Beckerman have started in the middle in the past two USA-Mexico games, during which Klinsmann has deployed a four-man, diamond midfield. But Jones\u2019s return gives the coach myriad additional options.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Zusi and Bedoya have more experience, but Yedlin finally has broken through at Sunderland and offers more speed and danger on the dribble on the flank.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Zusi, arguably the group\u2019s most comfortable player on set pieces, just helped Sporting KC win the U.S. Open Cup, while the versatile Bedoya has been starting regularly at Nantes.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The midfield alignment, and how Klinsmann apportions the playmaking duties between Bradley and Clint Dempsey, will be a huge factor against Mexico.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Cut: Joe Corona, Mix Diskerud, Alfredo Morales, Lee Nguyen&lt;/em&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;h3 class=\"p1\"&gt;&lt;b&gt;Forwards&amp;nbsp;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes), Gyasi Zardes (LA Galaxy)&lt;/b&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Dempsey remains the national team\u2019s most consistent scoring threat. He has nine international goals this year, more than twice as many as an other U.S. player. Altidore (four goals) still possesses a unique and vital skill set and Zardes has emerged as Klinsmann\u2019s most promising new player. Wondolowski, meanwhile, keeps chugging along. He\u2019s MLS\u2019s leading U.S.-eligible scorer, again, and likely will be an option off the bench if the hosts need a late goal.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;J\u00F3hannsson has been dealing with a groin issue, according to reports. Klinsmann said the Werder Bremen forward \u201Cis not 100%.\u201D&amp;nbsp;Stanford University junior Jordan Morris, who scored his first senior international goal against Mexico in April, is currently playing in CONCACAF's Olympic qualifying tournament with the U.S. U-23 team. He was named to the playoff preliminary roster as cover for a potential injury.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Cut: Alan Gordon, Aron J\u00F3hannsson, Jordan Morris, Bobby Wood&lt;/em&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;h3&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MEXICO&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Mexico, meanwhile, has unveiled a 25-man team that will be reduced to 23 publicly on Monday. Among the names listed by interim coach Ricardo \"Tuca\"&amp;nbsp;Ferretti are Galaxy forward Giovani dos Santos and Gold Cup MVP Andr\u00E9s Guardado, whose availability is in question thanks to an ankle injury suffered on Sept. 15. PSV Eindhoven originally said that the midfielder would miss four to six weeks, which would rule him out of the Oct. 10 playoff. But his inclusion may indicate that Guardado is winning his race against time.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Veteran Rafa M\u00E1rquez also is on the list despite the groin injury he suffered while playing for Hellas Verona in Italy. Goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, the Gold Cup starter, has missed out.\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;All seven of El Tri's players who have participated in this season's Champions League group stage, including Javier \"Chicharito\" Hernandez, are among the players in the mix.&amp;nbsp;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Here is Mexico's roster in full:\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;GOALKEEPERS&lt;/strong&gt;: Mois\u00E9s Mu\u00F1oz (Am\u00E9rica), Alfredo Talavera (Toluca), Jonathan Orozco (Monterrey)\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;DEFENDERS&lt;/strong&gt;: Rafael M\u00E1rquez (Hellas Verona), Diego Reyes (Real Sociedad), Miguel Herrera (Pachuca), H\u00E9ctor&amp;nbsp;Moreno (PSV), Jos\u00E9 Arturo Rivas (Tigres), Paul Aguilar (Am\u00E9rica), Israel Jim\u00E9nez (Tigres), Miguel Lay\u00FAn (Porto), Jorge Torres Nilo (Tigres)\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MIDFIELDERS&lt;/strong&gt;: Jos\u00E9 Juan V\u00E1zquez (Le\u00F3n), Jonathan Dos Santos (Villarreal), H\u00E9ctor Herrera (Porto), Carlos Esquivel (Toluca), Andr\u00E9s Guardado (PSV), Javier Aquino (Tigres), Carlos Pe\u00F1a (Le\u00F3n), Jes\u00FAs Corona (Porto)\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;FORWARDS&lt;/strong&gt;: Javier Hern\u00E1ndez (Bayer Leverkusen), Carlos Vela (Real Sociedad), Oribe Peralta (Am\u00E9rica), Ra\u00FAl Jim\u00E9nez (Benfica), Giovani dos Santos (LA Galaxy)\r\n\r\n&lt;h3&gt;&lt;strong&gt;GALLERY: U.S. Soccer in 2015&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;\r\n\r\n&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;\r\n&lt;/p&gt;"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.si.com/planet-futbol/2015/10/03/usa-roster-mexico-concacaf-cup-playoff-confederations>